Blood Bound
by Seidkona
Summary: In the dark and twisted realm of the Shinra elite, Reno fits right in amongst the lies and murder. Some say a Turk must sell his soul to do the things they do on a daily basis, but Reno never had one to speak of. He figures: the only difference between a good Turk and a dead Turk is knowing how to pick a side. Reno/Rufus. Side story of As Honor Burns, but can be standalone.
1. Chapter 1

Plot Summary - In the dark and twisted realm of the Shinra elite, Reno fits right in amongst the lies and murder. Some say a Turk must sell his soul to do the things they do on a daily basis, but Reno never had one to speak of. He figures: the only difference between a good Turk and a dead Turk is knowing how to pick a side.

Warnings - **Unbetaed, Yaoi, Angst, Sadomasochism, **Partially** AU, Torture, **extreme** Violence, Language, Dark Themes, **relation to a** Time/Dimension Play **story**, Sporadic Updates**.

This story is connected to my C/Z Time-travel story called As Honor Burns. The latter half of the chapter is Reno's POV of a scene that happened in chapter 12 of A.H.B.. When I say Sporadic Updates, I mean that this story will _most likely _be updated in response to occurrences in the main storyline. If you don't mind Cloud/Zack and want more of this variety of story, please check out As Honor Burns. Admittedly, it's not quite as dark being from Cloud's POV for the most part when compared to Reno's POV.

_A last mention: Reno is FFVII original canon style. This is not the comic relief from AC. This is the man who dropped the Sector 7 plate killing thousands._

* * *

You could call Reno many things: lazy, sadistic, insane, careless, sex-addled, and the list went on. However, you could _not_ call him disloyal.

Loyalty was the only real virtue Reno held in any regard. The world would burn before Reno went back on his blood bound oath to his job. That didn't mean that Reno didn't skirt rules when it benefitted him though.

His job description was to serve the President and his son in whatever way they wanted him to and to obey the person in charge of the Turks. To most others, these rules were set in stone. They did not leave much to interpretation and loopholes were scarce if one was honest. But Reno was an A-class liar, even to himself. He carved out his _own_ rules within the system and eventually became so important to the company that they couldn't do a damn thing about it.

* * *

It all began with a direct order from Rufus Shinra, the President's ambitious son. Reno had been only fourteen at the time, Rufus was a year younger, when the most powerful boy on Gaia told him in no uncertain terms, "You belong to me. Not my father. Not Veld. Your orders from here till the day you die are to follow _my_ orders above all."

Rufus had been a cold thirteen year old. His face was like an ice sculpture on his better days. Pale gold hair framing a milky skinned face and deep blue eyes. Rufus' eyes could have given the sea a run for its money in terms of vibrancy.

Reno was a bold kid at the time. He'd been with the Turks for little over six months. His brutality on the field had netted him several unfriendly nicknames among his peers but earned him their respect if only out of fear.

From the slums to the top block of Shinra, Reno was feeling like he ruled the world. Tseng watched him out of the corner of his eye, like Reno was just going to put a bullet in the back of his head one day. Veld gave him every mission that involved violence to an extreme, which was his favorite variety. In his eyes, he got to carry out the dog eat dog lifestyle he'd grown up with and get _paid_ for it. Life was good.

Rufus Shinra had been the one to knock him right off that pedestal. The fact that some brat could order him around like a trained pet got under his skin. Reno's temper snapped and he did the most inane thing he'd ever done: he attacked a _Shinra_.

By all rights, Rufus could have had him killed. It wouldn't have taken anymore than a quick scream; Tseng was only in the other room. But instead, he smirked at Reno from his place against the wall and behind Reno's six-inch blade.

"Even this moment, I hold your life in my hands. If you stand by me, you'll make it much further in this world beyond being Veld's attack dog. As is, you won't last. Once they get wind of just how unstable you really are, they'll... _phase_ you out."

"An' ya know that for sure?" Reno had snarled at the kid. He'd never met someone who could _smile_ while under threat of his knife. It was unnerving.

"Oh yes. People just go... missing in Shinra employ. It's a fact of life."

"So how is being your lap dog gonna be any better than bein' an attack dog for someone else?"

"Actually, I wanted you to be _my_ attack dog. Don't worry, you'll enjoy it just as much, if not more, than what you're currently doing. Besides... In some ways, it's in your contract to obey."

"Don't think that's what your old man meant when he had it written up," Reno purred skeptically. Now that the shock of Rufus' clear fearlessness was wearing off, he found himself becoming more interested.

Rufus looked like an entirely different variety of interested as he leaned closer, letting the knife rest against his throat, to whisper, "I don't _care_."

Reno dropped the knife in seconds and used his position over Rufus to press him back against the wall with a furious kiss. To his delight, Rufus responded more than willingly. When they broke apart, Reno kept his forehead pressed to the smaller boy's and stared down at him with hooded eyes. Rufus smiled again, razor sharp through his reddened lips.

"Tell me more," Reno rasped before kissing him again.

* * *

Working for Rufus was Reno's own twisted version of honor. He followed orders that came from Veld or the President, but put them through Rufus before carrying out every one. Rufus approved bits and pieces as it suited his own agenda. Reno never bothered asking any questions; truth was he just didn't give a damn what the motives were.

It became obvious that Rufus Shinra was a new breed of fucked in the head that even Reno had never seen before. His eyes would gain a feral gleam when Reno walked through the doors to his office covered in gore. He could have just blown someone's brains out, but Rufus never cared. Something about the inherent violence of Reno's job turned him on.

The kid wasn't just a sadist either, but a masochist extraordinaire too. Reno lost count on how many times he had to tighten the restraints on Rufus when they were fucking because he complained they were too loose. Apparently nothing but having his circulation completely cut off was good enough. Sometimes Reno worried about someone else catching sight of the bruises, but Rufus always brushed off the concern.

"They'll blend right in with what my father leaves behind," he said smoothly one night.

It was true. The President beat his son so badly that Reno often found Rufus black and blue beneath his crisp white clothing. In his more poetic moments, he mused about how such pristine clothes hid such darkness in Rufus' life. There was nothing that could be done though, and it seemed like Rufus had long stopped caring about the routine beatings. If anything, Reno figured he may even enjoy them.

* * *

Beyond all the red flags the inner workings of Shinra put up, Reno was entirely happy with his line of work. He never experienced the 'off-days' his colleagues were so fond of referring to when turning down a mission. It made little sense to him that someone could kill one day and then be too 'off' to do so the next day. For Reno, all days were a good day to commit murder so long as the mountain of Gil kept pouring into his bank account at the end of every two weeks.

Reno was fifteen when the President sent him down to the labs to pick up an 'important object' from Professor Hojo. He'd grumbled to himself about what the fat imbecile had called a 'mission'. Turks weren't_ couriers. _

It turned out that it was much more than what it appeared. That 'important object' had been his _son_.  
Rufus had been strapped to a table when Reno walked into the room and he'd felt the world stop spinning for a heartbeat's length before it tilted on its axis as nausea overwhelmed him. His senses were assaulted with the smell of mako and blood. Fighting back the urge to be sick, Reno stumbled to the table and tried to wake Rufus. If he'd been a religious man, he might have thanked a deity for the fact that the boy was still breathing.

"Ah good, you're here," a voice said from behind him, causing him to almost jump a foot in the air as he drew his gun. Whirling around, he pointed it straight at the Professor's head. The man just frowned slightly and looked down his nose at him. "Put that nonsense away, boy. You're here to collect the specimen, correct?"

"Specimen?" Reno growled without lowering his weapon.

Hojo just sighed and waved a hand at Rufus. "Yes, yes. The _boy_."

"Ya mean the President's _son_? What the fuck do ya think he's gonna do to your crazy ass for this?"

"Nothing at all, you dull-witted fool. He's the one who authorized the experimentation."

Reno balked at the idea that the man could offer his only son up to this freak. Sure, he'd never even met his own parents, but at least those fuckers had given him up from the get-go. Why would someone keep a child and then allow this to happen?

Still, Reno had no choice but to get Rufus out of there quickly. It was difficult carrying the other boy, but he simply didn't _let_ his strength run out until Rufus was safely home. Reno would never admit to his hands shaking in anything other than exhaustion as he brushed Rufus' hair out of his closed eyes.

Moments later, Rufus' mother had come in to find him there. She screamed and began crying loudly as she huddled over her son. Reno backed away from the bed awkwardly. He'd only ever seen the woman at official engagements where she attended with the President. She'd always seemed so beautiful then, but up close Reno could see the bruises peeking out from under her clothing.

"He did this didn't he? _DIDN'T HE_?" She screamed at Reno. He opened his mouth a few times, uselessly, before nodding.

She looked back to Rufus and let out another sob. "I'll kill him. I'll kill that ba—_BASTARD_!"

* * *

The next day, Reno was pulling a blank-faced Rufus out of the tub in his bathroom. His white coat was soaked in blood. His mother's brains were spilled all over the tile.

The kid didn't even cry.

Two days later, Reno was picking Rufus up from the labs again.

And it continued like this for months before one day, Reno just woke up in the labs himself. Rufus was beside him, awake for once, and was staring at the ceiling. Reno groaned loudly as he tried to sort out his aching head.

"You're going to be in pain for awhile. It'll pass," Rufus said quietly without looking at him. "It always passes." Reno would have worried about the contemplative tone in the face of the current circumstances, but Hojo returned then and Reno couldn't do a damn thing but try not to scream for the next five hours.

They got released together. Rufus had made it clear that questioning the experimentation would only gain them _more_ time in the labs, so Reno just tried to accept things. Rufus was many things, but he was _never_ wrong.

It was months later when Hojo had a small R inked on both of their hands. After that, they both just started wearing gloves. Reno made the case that it was better for his job when asked, and Rufus just glared at people until they left.

* * *

Those months of TLC from the mad man had caused changes in them. Reno was faster, stronger, and his thoughts processed at lightning speed. Not a single Turk could keep up with him on the field anymore. People noted that his eyes had changed as well. Not just the additional mako that made them glow brightly, but those who _really_ looked could see his lurking intelligence. Rufus had once compared his eyes to cloaked daggers.

And Rufus had just gone from a frigid looking kid to a teenager with a deadly glare. His deep blue eyes had become like shards of ice from the mako glow. When Rufus fixed you with one of his stares, you could feel it deep within your soul. It set the fight or flight instincts off in almost everyone the boy dealt with. His father always responded with fight as he beat Rufus again, but everyone else turned to flight.

Rufus only got worse when a man by the name of Lazard Deusericus joined Shinra. He started as an aide to Heidegger and was SOLDIER Director in under a year. Rufus always held the man in utter contempt. Reno never understood why until the day he saw Rufus, the President, and Lazard all standing near one another. Suddenly it hit him like a ton of bricks that Lazard looked _exactly_ like the President and his son.

When he asked Rufus about this later, all he got was a snarled, "He's a whore's son. That's all he'll ever be."

Reno didn't bother mentioning that _he_ was a whore's son too, but that was because he knew that it wasn't what Rufus was really saying.

* * *

When Rufus turns sixteen, he immediately moves out of his father's penthouse.

Their relationship blooms despite the chaos of their everyday life. They spend almost every night, in Rufus' new private apartment, fantasizing about the day that Rufus will rule the world. It's as close as either will ever come to acting their age. Because dawn always brings reality back. Reno is still a hired murderer and Rufus is still second fiddle to his father.

Hojo still calls them in for experimentation regularly and Reno is getting closer to simply helping the man trip down a flight of stairs.

The scientist is adamant that Rufus take some certain type of pills lately. Two a day and that means Reno is left picking another bottle up often. Hence, why he walked into the labs willingly today.

Hojo was bent over some kid, who was strapped to one of the chairs Hojo used to restrain his 'patients'. Reno moved as silently as death these days, so it was easy to sneak up on the man. He'd sworn to do so at every opportunity ever since the man had gotten the jump on him years ago with Rufus.

" Uh... Who's the kid, doc?" he asked in a bored tone.

It was satisfying to see Hojo spin around in shock. Reno could _hear_ his heartbeat speed up by several notches.

"What are _you_ doing here?" Ooh and didn't he sound positively _pissed_.

"I'm here to pick up Shrina, the younger's, prescription. Ya know, the one you say is so damn important he take?" Reno said while picking up a beaker and turning it around in his hand. He'd have dropped it too, if the poor kid on in the chair hadn't looked like a loud noise just might kill him.

"Of course... One moment," Hojo said as he ran off to find whatever those pills were made of. Reno watched him leave for half a moment before approaching the boy.

The stench of mako was so thick that Reno whistled low in sympathy. The poor bastard's eyes were blown so wide Reno doubted he could see a damn thing.

"Looks like the good doctor has done one _hell_ of a number on you, kid."

"Guh," was the only response. What a talkative son of a bitch.

Reno looked him over and was struck with something akin to déjà vu. He did a double take as he realized the kid was the fucking _spitting_ image of Rufus. Take away that ridiculously spiked hair and they could almost be twins. Hell, they even looked the same age.

"Ya look a lot like someone I know. A fucking _lot_. Who the hell are you?" he asked as he loosened the straps holding the kid down. Suddenly he felt more invested than he should be. The kid didn't say anything but groaned loudly. Must be in a lot of pain. Reno checked his info on the clipboard Hojo left behind.

"Cloud... Strife, huh?" And what the hell kind of name was that?

Suspicious, Reno walked away and grabbed an empty syringe. When he came back to the kid, he inserted it into his arm and drew some blood. The kid jerked in response and Reno had to grab his arm to keep it steady.

"Hold fuckin' still, kid. Just gathering evidence."

Not _entirely_ true, but Reno was already known to be good at bending rules. At that moment, the damned doctor returned with the bottle of pills.

"What are you _doing_?" he screeched as Reno capped the syringe and tucked it into his pocket.

With a cocky smirk, he said, "Superseding ya. Whatever you thought you could do today, without Presidential permission, won't be happenin', catch my drift?"

"He's a fresh SOLDIER candidate. I'm giving him his initial mako injections!"

"Then why ain't he out there, with his buddies?" he asked with feigned interest.

"He's got sensitivities." Reno rolled his eyes without bothering to disguise it. Sensitivities? Yeah that's exactly what this was, and he was the next emperor of Wutai.

"Looks like ya pumped him full of a hell of a lotta mako for a kid with sensitivities. Come on, kid," he said and pulled the kid up. The blond just slumped against him boneless. Fantastic.

"I'll go to the President!" Hojo said angrily.

"Go for it, slick. I've done my good deed for the day," Reno crooned mockingly as he moved forward to grab the bottle of pills. The kid in his arms desperately fought against him as he tried to approach Hojo.

Reno just sighed and hissed, "Calm the fuck down. Just need ta get somethin'."

As far away as possible, Reno reached out and snatched the bottle from the scientist. Hojo growled at him but otherwise couldn't do a damned thing. Reno gave a grin and a two fingered salute as he dragged the lifeless kid out of the room. In the hallway, the limp fucker got even limper as whatever tension was left in him drained out. Reno frowned as the kid's face turned a sickly green.

"If yer about to die, ya better not fuckin' vomit on me, kid." The boy said nothing, and Reno had to assume he'd passed out.

Without wanting to drag him up to Rufus' place in the middle of the day, Reno was forced to bring him to his own underused apartment. Looking a lot like a date rapist, he hauled the boy into his apartment with him over his shoulder. Kicking the bedroom door open, Reno all but threw the deceptively heavy bastard on the bed. Was this kid _all_ muscle?

Reno perched at the end of the bed and waited for him to wake up, which, naturally, took _hours_. When he finally did begin to stir, Reno moved closer to lean over him. The kid must have noticed how close he was because he flailed around violently. Reno scowled and drew back.

"Fuckin' hell, kid. Just tryin' ta see if you were alright."

The kid opened his eyes once then shut them instantly. Reno fought the urge to chuckle as he pulled a cigarette of his pack and stuck it in his mouth. He moved back to the foot of the bed and went back to waiting as the kid readjusted to being alive.

As soon as he could open his eyes, he looked at Reno with a confused expression before asking, "Wh—where am I?"

"My place. Didn' know where else ta take ya," he said easily around the cigarette.

"I thought you lived with— Never mind. Wrong guy."

Reno's eyebrow skyrocketed at that. How the _fuck_ did this kid know he lived with Rufus? _No one_ knew he lived with Rufus.

"Interestin' that you should say that. I _don't_ live here. I just own it. So, seems like you know me, but I don't know you. That just ain't gonna do, kid."

The kid grimaced in what looked like an unconscious move. Must not have wanted to reveal his knowledge.

"I'm not a kid. You can't be mo—much older than me," he mumbled so quietly that Reno had to use his enhanced hearing to catch it.

"You really like ta change words mid-go. An' I'm seventeen, if you're not the same age then yer a kid ta me," he said while looking the kid over. "So... who the fuck are ya?" he asked finally.

"Cloud Strife. Ca—SOLDIER 3rd class."

"More than that."

"Sixteen. From Nibelheim."

Reno grinned a bit at the evasive little fucker. "I'm thinkin' yer a liar."

"Try proving it," the blond growled and Reno was surprised to see his pupils change size. No... Not size. Shape. They went from round to slitted like a cat. Oh man, Hojo really _did _ do a number on this one.

"Nice eyes there, General, sir," he said with a smirk. Oddly, the kid seemed to realize something from what he said and his face broke out into a horrified expression as he grabbed at his hair. Reno frowned at the motion.

"None of that! You new mako'ed up kids don't know your own strength. You'll tear yer hair out. And it's such a pretty color too."

"Shut _up_, Reno!"

The words registered in his brain faster than he could process and he sprung forward and fisted a hand in the collar of the kid's uniform. He managed to put his 'Turk face' on in time to ask, "How the fuck do ya know my name?" Unfortunately, the kid had a 'Turk face' of his own and Reno found himself unable to read it.

The little bastard smirked and said, "Word of mouth."

Reno had to give him points for being bold. He also had to admit that not only did this kid _look_ like Rufus, he fucking _acted_ like him too. This was déjà vu all over again; all he needed was the knife.

"Ya don't know who the fuck yer messin' with, kid. I could turn your ass back over to Hojo in the blink of an eye. And then who the hell would save ya, then?"

"Just kill me instead."

Reno was stunned for a moment. This kid was the real fucking deal. Instantaneously, Reno was filled with affection for the other boy. He started laughing uncontrollably and this card of a kid laughed along with him. Hell, the kid almost looked like he liked Reno too. This kid would make one hell of a Turk.

"I don't know who the fuck ya are. But I'll figure it out eventually. In the mean time, I like you. Got a feelin', Rufus would like ya too. If you already know so damn much about me, you'd probably fit right in with my department," he said through his laughter.

"I already told Balto; I'm not interested in the Turks," the kid replied simply, but it was still good natured in tone.

Reno paused in his mirth for a moment to consider the boy again. He knew Katana by name. That was rare for anyone outside the Turks.

"Is he the one who told ya about me?"

"If you'd believe that, then sure," the kid said with another arrogant smirk.

Reno gave the kid a shark-like smile, teeth clenched gently around his cigarette, before casually saying, "Well, Cloud Strife, ya've got my attention for sure. You've got Hojo's too, so if I was you, I'd want to stay on _my_ good side."

The kid just snorted and said, "You don't _have_ a good side."

"I do so. And 'is name is Rufus Shinra."

"Well give Rufus my best, but I've got to get home."

"I'll walk ya there," Reno said, drawing out the end both seductively and dangerously.

* * *

He finally backed off the kid and helped him off the bed. As he passed Reno, he took the opportunity to palm the kid's ID card. No chance the kid would have noticed beyond that mako haze he was still in. The kid led him down to the lower ranking SOLDIER apartments. Reno found this a bit odd as, if the kid really was a fresh SOLDIER, then he shouldn't be living in one of these until tomorrow.

When the kid reached his door, he fumbled around for his ID before shooting Reno an accusing glare. The redhead gave him a roguish smile and shrugged. In the end, the kid had to knock. Barely a second later some black fucking blur came rushing out of the apartment and tackled the kid. Reno raised an eyebrow and pulled out a cigarette.

"Where the hell have you been, Cloud?! I've been losing my damn mind. I thought... Gaia! Cloud you don't want to know what I thought," kid number two said so wetly that Reno could only assume he was crying. What a pussy. Out of nowhere, Hewley stepped into the doorway. He looked from the two kids on the ground to Reno. Reno just shrugged and lit the cigarette.

Kid, second in command, looked at Reno jealously and Reno just sent a lewd grin his way. No reason to not have a little fun while he was there. Luckily for him, the little blood spitfire didn't see it.

"Who are you?" the black haired boy asked.

"The guy who saved yer friend here from the big bad doctor," Reno said sardonically.

"What did Hojo want with him?" Hewley asked pointblank.

"Beats me, man," Reno said between drags.

Hewley had the nerve to walk up to him, grab his arm, and growl, " Stay away from Cloud. I'll deal with Hojo."

"Nah, Sephiroth'll deal with him, right? Cause that _always_ works out so well."

And it really didn't. Sephiroth plus mad scientist often resulted in millions of gil in damages to the labs. But Reno knew it was time for him to leave. Hewley would be a problem if he stuck around.

With a grin and a two fingered salute to the blond kid, Reno walked away saying, " See ya soon, blondie."

As he moved down the hallway he heard the other kid ask, " Why? Why will he see you soon?" in a decidedly jealous voice. Reno chuckled to himself as the elevator dinged and he headed up for Rufus' place.

* * *

His own personal blond was already home by the time Reno arrived. He looked up over his glass of white wine and gave Reno a quizzical look.

"You're home unusually early."

"So are you, babe."

"Mmm, yes, well I had very little to do. Everyone was busy attending to readjusting numbers to accommodate the new SOLDIERs that graduated today," Rufus said simply as he returned to reading over whatever boring report he had on his lap. Reno walked over, pulled the paper out of his hands, and straddled Rufus. His lover narrowed his eyes lustfully as Reno took the wine glass and polished it off with flourish.

"That was _mine_."

"Sharin' is caring, babe."

"Is that so? So tell me, have I been sharing _you_ this evening?" he asked in a falsely calm voice before Reno realized his fatal mistake. Before he could respond, he was pushed violently against the wooden table behind him. Rufus drew his knife, and like Reno was so very fond of doing to him, slammed it directly through his palm and into the wood beneath. Reno hissed needily and thrust his hips against Rufus'.

"Nah, babe. All yours," he rasped as Rufus set to opening his shirt.

"Then _why_ are you _drenched_ in someone _else's_ scent?" Rufus asked while punctuating every emphasis with a bite to his skin.

"Found an interestin' kid in Hojo's office today..."

"Do go on. I love having the mood ruined by thoughts of a psychopath."

"Need to, if ya wanna know why I smell like someone else."

"Fine," Rufus said as he sat back with a huff. Reno frowned regretfully and reached over to pull the blade from his flesh. It stung as he removed it, but the wound sealed over instantly. One of the little quirks Hojo's work resulted in.

"So I found this kid. Looks about yer age. Looks a _fuck ton_ like ya too."

"My father has, I'm sure, _multiple_ bastard children. What's the point?"

"Hojo's got a real interest in this one. Injected the poor sap with somethin' and a hell of a lot of mako. Kid's eyes turned slitted like Sephiroth's when I pissed him off. And the kid knows shit. Like that I live with you. Knew my name too. This kid is gonna be important. Just got a gut feelin' about it."

Rufus seemed to be contemplating something for a moment before asking, "And his personality?"

"I'd have sworn he was you if his hair didn't look so ridiculous."

"Interesting, indeed," Rufus said lowly while looking around at nothing in particular. "Did you happen—"

Reno cut him off with a smirk and held up the syringe of the kid's blood. Rufus smiled at him both fondly and with an edge of planning. Reno had a feeling he'd be seeing a _lot_ more of that kid in the near future. He might turn out to be a valuable asset in Rufus' move to control Shinra. If nothing else, they'd know where he was if they needed to take him out for security reasons.

"You remind me often why I rely so heavily on you," Rufus purred as Reno pulled him in close. One last shared dark smile and they lost themselves in the other's mouth.


	2. Chapter 2

**Unbetaed** and written in the wee hours of the morning (why do I do this to myself?).** Yaoi** (not much), **Swearing** (plenty),** Murder**, mentions of past **Rape**, references to events from **As Honor Burns**.

This is almost entirely based on something that happens in Before Crisis plus a little As Honor Burns plot. A tiny sliver of Reno/Cloud flirting, but it's not going anywhere. I elaborate on that more in As Honor Burns.

_In response to the questions in the review: As of right now, all canon characters will be appearing in this story and As Honor Burns. P.S. I can't pair Reno with anyone but Rufus because they fit so well together. _

* * *

Reno was in a good mood today and everyone who saw him knew it. His mouth was stretched into vicious grin as he headed straight for Rufus' office with a sheet of crisp white paper and a video tape in his hand.

Everything was going right and Reno _loved_ it when things went right. He may not be a guy fond of plans, but he certainly did have expectations, and hopes, for how things would turn out. Sometimes they did; mostly they didn't. But _today_, they most certainly were.

Rufus had ordered a paternity test on Strife's blood, and, like Reno knew it would, it came back a full match to the President. Rufus was more than a little intrigued at this point as he skimmed through Strife's file. The kid scored the highest of the new SOLDIERs on his exam, was the best performer in basic training, and looked to be well on his way to a career as a SOLDIER officer.

He'd been ordered to pull every string he could find to gather more knowledge on Strife, which meant someone was gonna be on their way to Nibelheim soon. In the mean time, he managed to round up a surveillance video of the ballsy little fuck standing up to the General himself. It'd been a few months since the incident, but Strife looked ready to kill on that grainy clip. Sephiroth didn't seem to be taking him lightly either, if the hand on his sword was anything to go by.

They had been discussing the other blond at length when Tseng had come into Rufus' office, breathing heavily, and eyes wild.

"Tseng. Shouldn't you be in the infirma—," Rufus started before Tseng cut him off.

"Sir! The President has ordered the destruction of Kalm! He's trying to put a stop to the leak of Shinra tech in the hands of that anti-Shinra group Veld and I have been investigating."

Rufus looked entirely unconcerned as he replied, "Hmm, so my father _can_ make logical decisions."

Tseng turned sheet white for a moment before regaining composure and straightening his posture. Whatever he'd been hoping Rufus would say, he definitely hadn't said it.

"Orders, sir?"

Rufus waved his hand at the both of them. "Do your jobs. Make sure Veld keeps it under wraps."

"It's his hometown, sir..."

Reno turned around and smiled at Tseng dangerously. "Turks' don't _have_ hometowns, boss."

Tseng gave him a disturbed look as Reno led the way out of Rufus' office. Veld had just entered the Turk floor as they rejoined the other members of their division. He looked like his nerves were frazzled, and Reno was delighted to see it. He had a sneaking suspicion he was getting a promotion today.

"Sir, what are our orders?" Tseng asked Veld as the older man moved to collect his weapons from the armory.

"I'm ordering a strike 50 kilometers north of Kalm. We'll use this distraction to get into Kalm, find the target, and get out. I've got a SOLDIER team waiting already."

"An' me, sir?" Reno inquired as he grabbed his own set of weapons. Fifty kilometers north of Kalm sure as fuck didn't sound like 'the destruction of Kalm' to Reno, but he supposed it didn't matter so long as the target died. Veld looked at him with a deep frown and Reno felt a twitch of annoyance bloom even before he said what Reno suddenly knew was coming.

"You're to remain here until after the strike. Your job will be to eliminate the SOLDIERs."

"That's a pretty fuckin' boring job, sir," he snarled angrily.

"And this is a stealth mission, Reno. We don't have time for your theatrics," Veld said firmly.

"Theatrics? Ya been runnin' any stealth missions with me lately? I can handle a get-in-get-out type affair, thank you very much," Reno insisted, still angry, before adding, "Sir," as an afterthought.

No amount of arguing would change things though, and Veld and Tseng departed without him.

Suddenly bored, Reno went to his old standby for entertainment: monitoring the bug he'd put on Veld's PHS. In his private office, he kicked up his feet on his desk and put in headphones to listen silently. It didn't take long to hit gold.

"This is A team," came an unknown voice over the tap.

"Start the operation. Target...," Veld's voice started before cutting off from static. He must have been leaving the range of Midgar's reception towers. Abruptly it cleared for a second to allow Veld to finish with the word, "Kalm."

"Kalm?! That's not," more static cut off the transmission and Reno felt a grin forming on his face. "Answer me!" the _poor_ SOLDIER cried once more before the line went dead.

"Somethin' tells me, Veld's gonna have a nasty surprise waitin'," Reno said to himself with a chuckle. SOLDIERs like this kid were incredibly dull in the head. If he didn't assume there would be vital information lost in the static off the bat, then he'd probably never know about that '50 kilometers north' bull that Veld had mentioned here at HQ. So maybe Kalm _would_ be getting blown up today.

* * *

Sure enough, barely twenty minutes later, he had a call coming in from Tseng.

"Reno. Get to Kalm ASAP. There's been a mistake. I'm on my way back to HQ to secure medical personnel."

"Gotcha, sir," Reno purred.

Reno had headed right down to the garage and hopped into a car. The ride to Kalm was made even more blissful as he watched the huge blaze on the horizon. He'd always been fond of fire.

The town was utterly destroyed from the look of it. Reno was watching from the sidelines as SOLDIERs, the ones who _weren't_ bought out by the Turks, and infantrymen fought to kill the raging fire. He caught sight of Hewley carrying victims out as quickly as possible, and, wouldn't you know, his new blond friend was here too. The two young SOLDIERs, Cloud and the black haired wonder, were backing Hewley up.

He'd turned back to watching the town for a while as he smoked a cigarette when he felt Cloud finally notice him. He looked at the boy and raised an eyebrow while making a beckoning motion with his finger. The blond didn't look too happy to see him, but started walking over anyway.

When he was close enough, Reno greeted him with, "Fancy meetin' you here, Cloud."

"Yeah. Fancy that. What is this?" the kid asked furiously.

He smiled sweetly and responded, "What's what?"

"What _is_ this?" Cloud demanded as he waved at the burning town behind him.

"An error in a scheduled military bomb test," Reno said with a careless shrug. Sounded like a good enough excuse to him.

The kid even had the nerve to ask, accusingly, "Is that what you're going to call it?"

"Does it matter?"

"There were hundreds of innocents killed in that town, Reno. Mothers and kids. I've been pulling bodies out for the last half an hour," the irate blond ranted.

"What a fuckin' shame, man. My sympathies. I can recommend some real nice therapists for shit like that," Reno said as though he was sorry. He even put on a matching sympathetic face. Apparently that pissed the kid off as he grabbed Reno by the collar and hauled him closer. Reno grinned wickedly at making the boy rise to the bait. He was almost as fun as Rufus to mess with.

"You kill innocent people and—"

"And what? Ya gonna kill me, Cloud? I'm already unravelin' ya, kid. Did ya know yer, _technically_, a Shinra?" Reno asked with delicious venom coating his words. Strife reared back as if _he_ was the fire.

Fear, horror, confusion, and finally denial passed over Strife's face before it settled back into an angry mask.

"You're a liar," he said heatedly.

"Oh yeah, kid. Ran the blood tests and _everything_. Rufus has it in black an' white, if yer interested in seein' the proof. Wonder, what'ch'er ma is like? Suppose it ain't hard to find sluts who will bend over for a buck, but —" Reno would have kept going if Strife hadn't cocked a fist back and slammed it right into his jaw. He could feel the bones breaking under the power of the young SOLDIER's punch.

"Keep talking, and I'll kill you," Strife hissed while leaning in. Reno would have smiled again, but the bones were still healing. They creaked as the tension of his muscles pulled them back into alignment and the mako fused them.

"Calm the fuck _down_, kid. I've got a real soft spot fer Shinras. Well... The younger ones. Don'tcha wanna meet yer brother?" he asked with a distinct lustful purr. Shit like this was really a turn on.

Oddly enough, the kid nodded even though he looked like he might explode as he did so.

"If it makes ya feel any better, ol' Shinra was two-timing his own wife with yer ma. So it wasn't just her honor being stamped on by the fat bastard," he consoled sweetly.

"Somehow... That doesn't make anything better," the kid snarled with all the fury of a rabid wolf.

"Well, come to my place and I'll blow ya. Would that make things better?" Reno flirted shamelessly.

Strife smirked and replied, "I'd rather be castrated."

"That could be arranged, if that's what yer into, blondie," Reno half teased, half threatened.

"Tell Rufus... We'll talk. Soon. Other than that, stay the fuck away from me."

Reno raised an eyebrow as the blond turned away and started walking back to his pretty little friend.

"Aw, but you'll miss me!" he shouted as Strife kept walking.

"Not likely."

Reno grinned again as Cloud made it back to his buddy. This kid was really fun to fuck with.

* * *

It wasn't long after that the actual SOLDIERs took off and Reno was able to move in. They were loading everyone from Kalm into medical vehicles and Reno walked right up to the one holding Veld. The back of it was open and the man was laying flat on his back on the gurney, a distant look on his face.

"Yo, boss," he greeted with a two-fingered salute. Veld didn't even look at him. "Ya gonna make it?"

"I'll live...," his boss said quietly.

"What a shame," Reno said honestly. Veld didn't bite.

Tseng, having finally made it back to Kalm, approached from Reno's right and stared solemnly at Veld.

"Orders... sir?"

Veld opened his mouth to respond when his PHS rang. He answered and Reno watched as he conversed with whoever was on the other end. The answers were vague and Reno couldn't listen in on the tap here, so he could only speculate as Veld's face went from hopeful to horrified. He tried to argue with the person on the other end, but was clearly silenced forcibly. Reno figured that meant it was the President.

"Yes, sir...," Veld ended and hung up the PHS. He went back to staring up at the top of the vehicle as he said, "We're to take the survivors to the Nibelheim laboratory."

Reno felt his eyebrows climb at that. Nibelheim? Beyond this new development with Strife, nothing had come out of that town in years. It was a tiny little place where the first reactor had been built and Hojo had a lab there somewhere, but that was it. The lab hadn't even been used in years. Rumor had it, it was where Hojo carried out his more twisted shit.

"My wife... My daughter... Felicia... Are either of them alive?" Veld choked out and Reno's lip curled in disgust. How fucking pathetic.

"Both have severe burns, but are alive," Tseng said gently. Reno scoffed audibly this time. What was the world coming to when Turks were more concerned with their families than their missions.

"Good... Good," Veld breathed thankfully.

Reno turned around and started walking towards the Turk-controlled SOLDIERs who were waiting for further instruction. He dialed Rufus on the PHS as he approached them.

A few rings later, he answered with, "News? I've been told Kalm was razed."

"Yeah. Director hit a little static when issuing the orders. Dumbass SOLDIERs botched it," he said smoothly and watched as the SOLDIERs each flinched. Reno grinned viciously and walked a small circle around the lined up men.

"And those SOLDIERs...?"

"Are about to receive their next assignment," Reno said nonchalant as he stopped behind the line and unholstered his semi-automatic pistol.

"Excellent. Give it to them."

"Yes, sir," Reno said forebodingly. He raised the gun and put a bullet in the first one's head. The others started to move instantly, but Reno wasn't the 'fastest Turk' for nothing. He put another one between the eyes of the guy on his left and then one in the leg of the last guy who tried to run. The guy fell over with a shout and Reno walked slowly up to where he was trying to crawl along the ground. He pressed his boot into the wound on the SOLDIER's leg and relished in the scream.

"Please! Please I'll do _anything_," the poor bastard bawled as Reno aimed.

"Ya already have," he cackled as he fired.

"You truly are a prime example of what a Turk should be, Reno. I'm always impressed with your work," Rufus said over the PHS with lust coating his words.

"That's cause ya love the sight of blood, ya little sadist. So, sounds like your old man wants the survivors taken to Nibelheim. I'm gonna say Hojo stepped in and volunteered himself to treat them."

"Fine. Gather information on Strife while you're there."

"Don'tcha think it's a bit fishy that suddenly Hojo wants to return to a lab he abandoned years ago when he got his promotion to the head of the science department _right_ after he gets a hold of Strife, who's _from_ Nibelheim?"

"...Extremely, now that you mention it. Perhaps we should take Strife's... family into protective custody?"

"I'll look inta it. Send a few helicopters out to the east."

"Done. I'm trusting you to handle things as needed. I'll see you when you return."

"Sounds good, babe," Reno purred sweetly before hanging up. He whistled all the way back to his car and took off towards where he'd be meeting the helicopters.

* * *

It took about two hours to get everyone loaded up and have them on their way. The trip was long, but Reno never minded so long as it was in a helicopter. He'd been stuck with Tseng and the wounded Veld though, and that was depressing. He spent the whole trip serenading them to brighten the mood. Fuckers didn't even seem to appreciate it.

After a refueling stop in Costa Del Sol, they landed that evening just north of Nibelheim on what small space they could find in the mountainous region. The medical personnel, all Hojo's goons, unloaded the survivors and took them straight to the mansion. A few shouts rang out as they worked to subdue some crazy fucking monster holed up in the mansion. For some reason, they didn't bother killing it, but just locked it in a room upstairs. Reno figured it must be Hojo's pet or some shit.

Everyone from Kalm, including the director, was taken below to the labs and Reno stayed out of the process. He spent enough time in labs as it was; he didn't see any need to be down there if Veld was going. Reno clapped Tseng on the back and left to go explore the town before Hojo arrived.

It was a sleepy little village and most houses were dark even despite the early hour. Lighting a cigarette, Reno decided to use trial and error to hunt down information on Strife. He knocked on the door of the largest house and waited. A few minutes later, a tired man with brown hair answered.

"Can... I help you?" he asked as he looked at Reno's clothing with a startled expression.

"Lookin' for the Strife household," Reno said while taking a drag off his cigarette. He watched as the man's expression soured instantly.

"Next door. Now stay away from my house," the man growled and slammed the door, but not before Reno caught sight of a confused looking girl behind him.

Still, Reno moved next door and repeated the process. This time a _very_ lovely older blond woman answered the door. Jackpot.

"Missus Strife, I'm assumin'?"

She frowned at him and looked at his uniform. "Is my son alright?"

"Just fine, ma'am. But I gotta ask ya a few questions," Reno said casually.

She moved aside and let him inside. It was a quaint little house. Knick knacks and lots of wooden furniture. Clearly the President wasn't paying her any hush money.

She sat down at the table and fixed him with a cold glare that reminded him instantly of her son. He couldn't help but grin in response.

"You're here to kill me," she said matter-of-factly and Reno raised an eyebrow.

"Nah. Just here to ask ya about how ya came to have the President of Shinra's kid. No killin' involved. Neither of them even know I'm here; the Pres or your son."

"He took what he wanted. I was too young to stop him. I simply chose to turn the misfortune around by loving my son dearly."

"And ya let him run off to join the same company owned by the man who raped ya?"

"My son will do great things one day," she said as though that explained everything.

"What kinda things?" Reno inquired.

"You'll just have to find out. I'd suggest siding with my son," she stated enigmatically. Reno was really getting annoyed with these 'all-knowing' Strifes.

"Your son has caught the interest of some really bad people in Shinra. Yer likely to become a target."

"I've always been a target, but my life isn't important. Cloud will be fine; he's not alone, and he's been through worse," she explained distantly. This was all getting too weird for Reno. What could be worse than losing your ma? It certainly did Rufus no favors. And who held their own life in such little regard? What did this woman know that she wasn't telling?

"You won't convince me to tell you anything. So you had best just leave or kill me now," she finally said with a pointed look at Reno.

"Told ya I wasn't gonna kill ya," Reno said with no small measure of annoyance.

"Perhaps, but you don't look like a man with much temper."

"I'm really not."

"Then stop wasting both of our time," she said with a sarcastic smile.

"Whatever," Reno growled and stood up quick enough to make the wooden chair screech on the floor. "Get yerself killed by Hojo, be my guest. Not gonna be my fuckin' fault."

"Have a nice night," she said as she let him out. Reno had to give the bitch props for being snarky with a guy openly carrying as many weapons as he was. He could see where Strife got it.

Unfortunately, Reno wasn't satisfied with the answers he got, which was almost none. All he had was confirmation that Strife's ma had been fucked by the President, which they already knew.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see a kid sneaking up on him from the shadows of the first house he'd visited.

"Excuse me?" a small girlish voice asked.

Reno looked at the girl, no more than twelve or thirteen, who stepped out into the moonlight.

"What do ya want, kid?"

"You're looking for the Strifes? Do you know Cloud?"

Reno felt his face break out into a dark grin and the girl stepped back before Reno schooled his features back to normal.

"Yup. Cloud's a good buddy of mine. I was just sayin' hi to his ma for him. You a friend of his?"

"Yep! My name is Tifa Lockhart. Did he mention me?"

Reno smiled as nicely as he could and nodded, "Maybe once or twice, yeah. Pretty thing like you? Girlfriend maybe?" The girl just giggled and blushed.

"N—no. But... No. I wasn't. We're just friends."

"Aw well, don't give up hope. I'm sure he'll be knocked flat on his ass by how pretty ya are when he comes back here."

"Is... Is he a SOLDIER?"

"You betcha. Just inducted two days ago." She gasped in wonder and Reno took the opportunity to swoop in for the kill. "I wonder... He's one hell of a swordsman. Ya know where he learned it from?"

"He was training a lot before he left. Fighting monsters up in the mountains after his birthday. He... really changed when he turned sixteen. For the better, I think. He seemed so... in control," she said fondly. Reno thought back to the blond and had to agree. The kid, despite his outbursts, reminded him quite a bit of Sephiroth. "He saved me from a monster in the mansion."

"That ugly fuckin' two toned bastard?" She nodded. "Did he get hurt?" he asked curiously. That thing took multiple people to lock in that damn room.

"No... but I did. I feel so bad. My father hurt him after he saved me and brought me back to the town. I wasn't able to tell my father that I'd followed Cloud there, because I knew he'd be so angry... But if I had been able to talk to him before he hurt Cloud, I would have told him!"

"I'm sure it wasn't your fault."

She looked at the ground and guilt crossed her face as she said, "It was though... Cloud was doing fine against it... I think he would have run away if I hadn't gotten in the middle of things. Then no one would have been hurt."

"So... Cloud just got these fighting skills... out of nowhere?" Reno asked awkwardly.

"Yep! It was so weird and cool."

"That's pretty interestin'," Reno muttered mostly to himself. "Well, thanks kiddo. I'll tell Cloud hi for ya."

"Thank you!" she squealed happily. "Have a good night, mister!"

"Night, kid," Reno said with a little salute before walking back in the direction of the mansion. To think, a kid had more information than Strife's own mother. A sudden thought occurred to him and he pulled out his PHS and dialed.

"_Yes, _Reno?" Katana hissed in annoyance.

"Heya. Gotta pick your brain real quick. What do ya know about Cloud Strife?"

"That he's incredibly against joining our division for some reason and that he's got a lot of secrets that lead absolutely nowhere."

"Nowhere?" Reno asked curiously.

"I couldn't dig up a single suspicious thing about him beyond his skills and personality being abnormal for his background," Katana said with an air of frustration that Reno could completely understand. It wasn't usual for them not to be able to find something when it was clearly there.

"Ya tried to recruit him? What did he say?"

"Well no, obviously."

"Don't be a smart ass, _Balto_. The kid knew you by name."

"Yes I do generally introduce myself with my name, Reno. It's a common practice."

"He knew me by name too, before I ever got a chance to introduce myself. Did ya let it slip?" he demanded.

"Why would I discuss you with _anyone_ I was trying to recruit? You manage to scare even the most seasoned Turks with your insanity and brutality. If he knew you by name, then he knew you by reputation. Last I checked, Hewley was mentoring him, and the other boy he was so fond of, perhaps that's where he learned of you."

"Maybe," Reno mused. Nothing was adding up. "Oh well, thanks for the cooperation."

"I'd say 'any time', but you'd take that literally."

"Yeah fuck you too," Reno snickered as he hung up.

Strife was turning out to be a huge fucking mystery that got weirder at every turn. He'd never met anyone with a cleaner looking background. He couldn't even find any past trouble with the law. Everything was coming up roses for Strife. Head of his class of this year's cadets, savior of pretty little girls, fighter of fires, and the only kid in the world with the balls big enough to stand right up to Sephiroth himself. But Reno was a Turk, and he was a _damned_ good one at that. He'd uncover this eventually, and, when he did, he'd love to watch Strife's mask fall to pieces.


	3. Chapter 3

**Unbetaed**. **Censored Version**, see Ao3 (same name for story and my penname) for explicit content. **Swearing**. More rehashed** A.H.B. Scenes**.

_If you choose to read the explicit version: **NOTE THE WARNINGS** on Ao3. If you think Reno can be hard to swallow normally, you probably don't want to read about him in bed. It is significantly more explicit than what was found in the mature content of AHB._

Sorry for the length this update took to post, and for how short it is. The explicit version has a lot more in it. No promises on when the next update is either, but As Honor Burns often mentions when more is coming for BB.

Reno and Rufus' birthdays are made up by me. Reno is an Aries and Rufus a Scorpio. Mars signs unite!

_Also: If you read AHB, you may recognize mention of a certain dead clone! He wasn't forgotten, just not important for Cloud's story._

* * *

Unfortunately for Reno, his determination to crack the mystery that was Cloud Strife got put on indefinite hold when the blond had been deployed to Wutai. It was more than a little depressing, considering how little time he'd been given to do any more detective work over the last few weeks.

Reno had been stuck with making sure that Hojo didn't just kill Veld behind the scenes, so he was forced to bounce back and forth between Midgar and Nibelheim. The only good thing coming of it was that he got to keep an eye out for Cloud's mother. He may not care what happened to the cryptic bitch, but he just _loved_ getting to throw wrenches in Hojo's plans.

Sure enough, not long after arriving, Hojo had sent some of his assistants off to collect blood samples from around town under the guise of offering free health screenings. Though, from the shouting and screaming the creepy fucker had done afterwards, Reno had to guess he didn't find what he was looking for; not that he was surprised. Rufus had mentioned Sephiroth had come around inquiring about the survivors and pieced the connection between him and Strife together. Sephiroth gave the final clue as to why Hojo was in Nibelheim: the good doctor was looking for more O- subjects to fuck with.

Reno smirked a little to himself as he realized that Hojo was barking up the wrong tree. Strife got his blood type from his dear old dad; all the way back in Midgar.

"I've told you more than once, you incompetent _fool_! The most I was willing to provide for your little theory was the one clone," Hojo screeched at one of his assistants. Reno almost wished he had a bucket of popcorn as the two had been fighting for half an hour.

"But, Professor, the clone arrived dead. I never—!"

"And how exactly is that _my_ problem? If you could manage to find a _single_ person of the correct blood type then perhaps I'd be more willing to risk another clone on your project. Honestly, Kilmister, use some sense!"

Reno grinned rudely as the assistant stalked away. Watching Hojo abuse his underlings was almost as fun as fucking with Hojo's plans. Generally anything that brought misery to the lives of those running the labs was good enough to bring Reno some joy.

* * *

It happened to line up perfectly that Veld was released from Nibelheim on March, 28th; Reno's birthday. It was a good thing too, because Reno would have left his ass there if it meant missing out on spending his birthday at home with Rufus. There wasn't a single thing on Gaia that would keep him from the awesome sex he was due that night.

The Director was worse for wear these days. The burns on his arm had been so extensive that it had to be amputated, or at least Hojo said so. The twisted fucker probably just wanted an excuse to cut off limbs. Veld was given a new prosthetic, equipped with its own materia slot, but that would never replace his natural arm. Or his wife and daughter, who had ended up dying from their wounds. Reno found it a bit fishy that the Director had never been shown bodies, but Veld had insisted he didn't want to see them given the description of their burns. He supposed that it was fair that the old man remember them nice and pretty instead of melted horrors.

It left him a little giddy on the inside to think that Veld may end up too depressed to work from the tragedy, because that would give him a direct promotion to second in command. Reno wasn't very good with sympathy.

They touched down in Midgar in the early evening and Veld just disappeared. Reno couldn't give a damn, but he'd have to give the old man hell about being rude the next time he bumped into him.

And _speaking _of bumping into Rude. Reno ran smack dab into a broad chest covered in a black jacket and he staggered back to see Rude blocking his path. Reno grinned in greeting and held out a hand. Rude held his serious expression for all of two seconds before he grabbed Reno's hand and pulled him in for a one-armed hug.

"Hey, partner. Lookin' sharp as usual. How's HQ since I've been gone?"

"Quiet," Rude rumbled before smirking slightly. "Happy birthday, Reno. Safe to say I'll have to wait till tomorrow to take you out drinking?"

"Ya fuckin' know it. I'm not moving a fucking foot from that bed once I get his ass in it. So come on, gimme my damn present so I can get a move on!" Reno asked with a small bounce on his heels. He tried to peek around Rude on each side, but the fucker was just so damn tall.

Rude raised an eyebrow above his shades. "What makes you think I got you anything? I'm paying tomorrow night; that's all you're getting."

"Fuck that. You've got the goods, now hand'em over. Don't make me get violent, Rude. Ya fuckin' know I _will_," Reno snarled in a mock-angry tone. He started to pry at Rude's arms to get them out from behind his back. Unable to dislodge them, he planted his feet firmly on the ground and used his whole body weight to try and wrench one around. Still no dice. He threw a petulant glare at Rude, who just smirked back at him.

Finally taking pity on him, Rude pulled his hand around and pressed a small object into Reno's palm. With an uncharacteristic cry of delight, Reno started tearing off the paper on the little box. Pulling off the top, inside there was a pitch black folding knife with a silver scorpion etched on the handle and blade. Reno pulled it out of the box and felt its weight in his hand. It was heavier than most folding knives, but he liked that. Pleased with how well crafted it was, Reno grinned at Rude and leaned in close to his partner.

"If I wasn't a taken man, I'd kiss ya, Rude," Reno purred sweetly. Rude rolled his eyes, something only Reno could tell when he was doing, and snorted.

"No thanks. Now don't keep him waiting and try not to accidentally kill each other."

Reno just gave a cocky smirk and dashed past Rude. His partner was one of the only people who even knew about Reno and Rufus. Keeping it from him had been impossible back before Reno had the immunity to alcohol that he did now. Apparently, his drunken younger self had been fond of regaling Rude with R-rated stories of his and Rufus' nightly escapades.

* * *

He ran down the flights of stairs till he reached the elevator. As it drifted down toward the apartments, Reno was plotting all the wonderfully twisted things he was going to do to Rufus tonight. It was his birthday and he was going to lap up all the privileges while they were offered. Sprinting down the hall, he slid his ID and threw open the door to Rufus' apartment before shutting it behind him. It was a small miracle that no one had been around, so he hadn't even needed to be stealthy.

The living room was empty, but Reno wasn't surprised. Rufus was blunt little fucker when it came to things like this, and Reno knew he'd already be waiting in the bedroom from when Reno had called him on the way into Midgar.

Sure enough, he found Rufus stretched out naked on the bed like a debauched angel. His lips were wet and pouted, and his hands were already chained to the headboard. Reno took one look at the array of tools laid out for him and groaned in need.

"Happy birthday," Rufus purred lustily.

"Thanks, babe," Reno growled as he shed his jacket and yanked open his shirt. A few buttons flew off in random directions, but Reno didn't care. He had plenty of fucking shirts.

* * *

Over a month later, Reno was assigned to the Ancient in the slums. It was a regular job that rotated between a few select Turks, but was Tseng's favorite. Reno was pretty sure Tseng had a bit of a hard-on for the pretty girl; no matter how young she was.

Reno didn't really mind the job, but it forced him to be a lot more friendly than he was comfortable being. The girl's name was Aeris, and she was alright, but could be a tricky little brat every now and then. She often liked to slip away when the Turk assigned to look after her wasn't looking. She handled herself alright though, and Reno had a sneaking suspicion these missions would be going by the wayside soon. Tseng wasn't going to risk Hojo knowing that he had her location.

"You're too serious, Reno," she goaded as she pulled him along through Wall Market. He was trying to keep an eye on their valuables and she was here telling _him_ he was too serious. Just because she was alright getting pick pocketed, didn't mean he was. Not that he'd ever seen her get stolen from without her noticing first. The first time he'd been assigned this job, he gave the younger girl a run down on how to survive in the slums that included a lengthy lesson on pick pocketing; both how to avoid it and perform it.

Today he was a glorified shopping companion as she got a bag of groceries to take home to her ma. She dragged him into the store and he just stood by the door as she grabbed all of her necessities. It didn't take her long and she only ended up with one bag full. After that she asked him to walk her back to her church before his shift ended.

On the way out, he could feel someone's eyes on him and he forced his features to stay relaxed. Placing his arm around her shoulders, he gave his EMR a little obvious twirl as he walked by her side through Sector 6. Whoever was watching was now following. Aeris was happily oblivious as she prattled on next to him about something or other. Reno was getting excited at the prospect of a good fight if the person trailing them proved difficult. And if they didn't... Well his shift was mostly over anyway, and lil'sis could handle herself.

Once they reached the church, he said his goodbyes and watched as she skipped up to the door and then through it. As it closed behind her, he walked away and around the corner before pausing. Sure enough, his tail immediately snuck over to the doors of the church.

Reno was surprised to see Strife's little friend, boyfriend, _thing_. What the hell was this kid doing down here? A dark smile broke out on his face at the chance of this having to do with Cloud somehow. Was he connected to the Ancient? That would be just _delicious_.

Walking quietly until he was directly behind the young SOLDIER, he spoke in a sing-song voice, "Ah. Ah. Ahh. Ya didn' _actually_ think you could stalk a Turk, did ya?"

The black haired wonder turned around and shot him a glare that didn't fit his pretty little face. Reno just smiled a little wider and twirled his EMR again.

"What's it to you? I'm just trying to see a friend," he growled at Reno.

Raising an eyebrow in interest and amusement, Reno purred, "Oh yeah? Well she's never mentioned ya."

"Does she have to tell you everything?" the little bastard snapped. Reno gave a fake flinch and pressed a hand to his heart as though wounded by the harsh words. The kid didn't look amused.

Sobering a little bit, he started, "Why don'tcha tell me what yer here for an—," before the church door opened suddenly and Aeris stuck her head out. Reno snickered a little as the kid leapt away like she was a snake. Jumpy little fucker.

"Oh... Hi!" she said in a nice tone, directed at the kid.

"Hey, Aeris. Mind if you call off your guard dog here? I was just telling him I'm a friend of yours." Reno's smile dimmed a little. Maybe the kid _did_ know her. That would be disappointing.

Unfortunately, she nodded and said, "It's okay, Reno. I know him."

Reno frowned outright. Well this sucked. "I don't know, sis. This guy—"

"It's _fine_, Reno," Aeris said with her own special brand of bite. All Reno could do was shrug and turn to leave. Arguing with her would do him no favors with Tseng later. Still, unable to crush his curiosity, he paused around the corner again and waited.

As soon as they were in the church, Reno marched right up to the door and attached a small amplifier to the wood. Putting in an ear bud, he listened.

After a moment, Aeris spoke, _"So... who are you?" _He fucking _knew_ the kid was lying.

_"I'm Zack Fair, nice to meet you!" _Okay, so now he had a name to the face.

_"I don't think we've met, have we?" _

_"Well, we met just now." _Reno rolled his eyes. What an idiot.

_"You knew my name. And you weren't with Reno... so you're probably not bad. But only probably." _Reno reared back from the door and gave an offended frown. Little bitch. He'd get her back for that somehow; how dare she imply he was anything less than a Saint?

_"I'm not bad at all. You see the thing is..." _Go on, kid. Don't leave us hanging now.

_"The thing is...?"_

_"I've been... dreaming about you." _Gaia, this brat was one hell of a _smooth operator_. Reno had to force down the rising snickers at the idea of this kid using a line like that on Cloud. _"Uh... I don't mean that in a weird way. I mean it literally." _Oh, well then. That could be interesting. Aeris just laughed at the poor sap.

_"Hey come on! I'm being serious. This has been a big mystery for me, and I'm finally getting close to solving it."_

_"No, no. I believe you, but you're just so silly. I wouldn't laugh if you didn't doubt what you were saying. So, go on. You've been dreaming about me, and?" _He was going to need to give this girl a lesson on men and their goals. Reno wondered what Strife would say if he knew his little toy was here chatting up a pretty lady like this.

_"About you and my boyfriend, Cloud." _Reno had to clap a hand over his mouth to stifle the snort that erupted from him. Fuck, this kid was _gold_. Even Aeris seemed to find it hilarious as she laughed again.

_"Not in any dirty way!" _Sure, kid. Suuure.

_"Okay. I'll try to be serious. Just try to explain a little more so it doesn't sound so bad." _She was still laughing a little, and Reno couldn't blame her. At this point, he half hoped he was going to get to hear her shoot the poor brat down.

_"We're always in a field of flowers. These flowers. And I've been having these dreams for so long now. Hell, they're not even really dreams so much as memories. But you just said, we've never met. So how can I see things that never happened?" _Reno immediately stopped laughing and focused in. What the fuck kind of twilight zone shit was this?

_"Hmm... That.. doesn't make any sense." _Tell us something we _don't_ know, sweetheart.

_"So you don't know anything?"_

_"No, not really. You said you dreamed of your boyfriend too, so maybe he knows something more?"_

_"I can't ask him. I don't want him to think I'm nuts if he doesn't know anything. Plus, if he does, I don't want to trouble him anymore. He works so hard as it is." _What a bleeding heart.

_"I can... hear something inside you. A piece of the planet? No... a person. Oh..."_ What the fuck did that mean? Reno wasn't well versed in the skills of Ancients, but this was getting weird. And what did this mean for Cloud?

_"What? What do you hear? Hell, how do you hear?"_

_"You've got Lifestream inside you. Someone fused with you. I think... but that can't be possible." _Reno could kill for some actual facts at this point, because nothing was adding up. Everything out of their mouths thus far sounded like crazy talk.

_"What?!"_

_"I think that it's __**you.**__" _Reno raised an eyebrow at the door and frowned deeply. Just when he thought this couldn't get any weirder.

_"What do you mean? There's only one me, right?"_

_"One would think. No. It's definitely you. What did you say your boyfriend's name was?"_

_"Cloud. Cloud Strife."_

_"I don't... know what this means. Could you bring him here? If you're dreaming of him too, then he must be connected somehow."_

_"How do you know all this anyway?"_

_"I—I can't tell." _Well at least she was smart enough to keep quiet about something like that. Too damn bad for Fair, but Reno already knew so it didn't matter.

_"Hey, it's alright. We've all got our secrets. You've already told me more than I thought I'd find out today. I've just got to figure it out from here."_

_"We've got to figure it out. If you're dreaming about me too, then I'm involved. Besides, you won't be able to interpret everything he's trying to tell you." _Reno had a sinking feeling all of a sudden he'd likely be doing a lot of eavesdropping for the next few weeks, because this was too damn juicy to pass up. Plus, he was more curious than a cat and he just _had_ to know what the hell was going on.

_"He?"_

_"The other you. He's trying to get you to put yourself back together. It's... probably going to change you." _

_"Change me?"_

_"Mhm. Don't worry. He's still you, so it's not much. But he's much more serious. If he's here at all... Well nothing good could have happened." _She sounded rather frightened as she said that. Once again, Reno was left in the dark with all the 'why's', 'what's', and 'how's he wanted to ask.

_"But how did I end up with two of me inside myself? That doesn't make any—He came from Cloud?" _Jack. Fucking. Pot.

_"Huh?"_

_"This other me. I think I know where he came from. When I met my boyfriend for the first time, I got really dizzy like something had just passed through me." _Interesting effect to have on people, Strife. Wonder what the snarky little blond would say when Reno asked him about _this_.

_"So... Your boyfriend brought him to you? Is he... different too?"_

_"Different?"_

_"Well if he brought this other you with him, then he can't be quite normal, can he?"_

_"I mean, he's one hell of a fighter. He's so smart too. Sometimes I wonder if he knows everything or if he's just making stuff up to impress me. And he's brave. Pretty much take everything the best person you know is and then amplify it a few times, and you've got Cloud." _Not _exactly_ the description Reno would go with, but the kid couldn't be blamed before being blind-sided by Cloud's good looks.

_"Can he... hear things?"_

_"Like what?"_

_"The Planet?" _Reno considered this for a moment. Could Strife be an Ancient? He supposed it was possible, given how fucking cryptic his mother had been. Would that explain why he was so out of the ordinary? Maybe that would give a clue as to why he responded so well to Hojo's fuckery. That'd be something he'd have to look into.

_"Maybe? I don't know. I try not to pry." _Well, aren't you just useless, Fair.

_"You'll just have to bring him here then! We'll get to the bottom of this together. And then you can be whole again." _Yep, Reno was going to be a busy man for awhile. He couldn't wait for Strife to get back so he could check into all of this.

_"Thank you, Aeris."_

_"You're welcome. Now turn that frown upside down. I won't have my new friend looking so miserable."_

They went silent not long after that and Reno finally pulled away from the door with a small grin. He may not have gotten all the answers he was looking for, but now he had a whole ton more ammo to work with. Unfortunately, things were getting all supernatural, and Reno wasn't much of a believer. He was going to have to unravel this shit logically, because it had to have some underlying sense. But this was the biggest crack in Cloud's little shield yet. The possibility of him being an Ancient was the best theory Reno had at the moment, so he decided to stick with that until proven otherwise.

Now he just needed to get home so he could fill Rufus in on all this wonderful information.


End file.
